Australia Family Holiday

Australia Family Holiday

This two-week guided Australia holiday is full of activities for families. Climb the harbour bridge in Sydney; explore stunning Aboriginal rock art sites in the Red Centre; search for koala and kangaroo in the wild; and glide through the trees in Daintree Rainforest. The itinerary also aims to provide a detailed overview of Australia's core regions and can easily be adapted to suit older travellers.

Outline Itinerary

Day 1:
Arrive Sydney

You will be met on arrival at Sydney International Airport and transferred to Quay Grand Suites for four nights in a 2-bedroom harbour view suite, overlooking the Circular Quay and Sydney Harbour Bridge.

Pullman Quay Grand Sydney Harbour is located on circular Quay, a short walk from the Sydney Opera House. It is an impressive apartment-style hotel offering accommodation in 68 one and two-bedroom apartments with five-star facilities and spectacular harbour views.

Each apartment has a spacious open-plan lounge and dining room, a fully-equipped kitchen and integrated laundry. The 2 bedroom apartments have en-suite bathrooms attached to each room. Shared facilities include a gym, indoor heated swimming pool, and a recreation/lounge with a view of the harbour.

The standout feature of Pullman Quay is its location and the wonderful views it offers of Circular Quay and the Harbour Bridge. This is also a convenient location for sightseeing – close to the ferry stations, Opera House, CBD, shopping precinct, and the Botanical Gardens. There are some excellent restaurants right on your doorstep and the suites all have access to the Quandrant Restaurant and ECQ bar.

Day 2:
Get to Know Sydney

You will be picked up from your hotel at approx. 9am for a morning of touring in the company of an experienced guide.

This popular introduction to Sydney begins with the city’s central attractions, including the Darling Harbour, the historic Rocks area, and Australia's most iconic building, the Sydney Opera House. The tour then continues with a drive around the beautiful Harbour foreshore – with its glamorous waterfront homes and views – to the golden shores of Bondi Beach, where you can stop for photos and a stroll.

Late morning, you’ll be returned to the city via the tree-lined streets and terraced houses of Paddington. Your tour guide will deliver you to a local restaurant in the Rocks, near the Bridge Climb office, for lunch (to own account). After lunch, embark on the Sydney Harbour Bridge Climb.

The Sydney Bridge Climb has been called one of the world’s top 10 adventure experiences by Lonely Planet, and with good reason! Joining a group of up to 14 other climbers, you’ll traverse catwalks and ladders as you ascend to the summit of the harbour bridge, some 130 metres above the harbour itself. The views along the way are just wonderful, particularly on a clear day.

You will be provided with full safety gear and led by an experienced guide. The bridge climb lasts 3-4 hours and includes guide services, outfits and safety gear, as well as a group souvenir photo.

After the tour, you’ll be returned to your apartment. Evening at leisure.

Day 3:
Wildlife in the Wild

Depart the city this morning for Australia’s beautiful Southern Highlands, where you’ll embark on a shared bushwalk tour hosted by an expert naturalist guide.

The bushwalk tour provides a unique opportunity to see many of Australia’s most iconic wildlife species, such as kangaroo, koala, emu, wallaby, possum and more. You will search for platypus in rivers and, as night descends, track gliders and wombat. This region of Australia is also rich in birdlife, with lots of colourful parrots and lyrebirds.

The tour departs around noon (later in the summer to take advantage of the longer days) and returns to Sydney late evening. Afternoon tea and dinner (Oct to Mar) or lunch and dinner (Apr to Sep) are provided, as are hotel transfers and all entry fees. Dinner is served at a country pub.

Day 4:
At leisure to explore Sydney

Sydney, the biggest, oldest and, many would argue, most beautiful city in Australia, is notable for much more than its famous landmarks – the Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge. Built around its dazzling harbour, the city has a relaxed but vibrant character, and is a pleasure to explore on foot.

While your Sydney highlights tour covered the main sights, today is a great chance to take in some of Sydney’s other charms: its beaches, shops, galleries, theatres and restaurants. You can arrange as much or as little touring as you like, but here are just a few ideas:

• Take a walk around Circular Quay and to the Botanical Gardens, via the Opera House• Attend a performance at the Sydney Opera House • Take a ferry to Manly Beach – a stroll along Manly Wharf is a pleasant way to spend the afternoon • Get out on the harbour – travel on the Sydney Ferry network (day tickets available); hire a private charter; or head out sailing on a skipper • Tour Sydney’s art galleries (we can arrange private viewings at a number of galleries) • Fly over Sydney Harbour in a light aircraft and lunch on the Hawkesbury River • Explore the weekend markets • Follow the coastal trail from Bondi to Bronte Beach • Dine out at Darling Harbour

Day 5:
Uluru

Transfer to Sydney Domestic Airport this morning for the flight to Ayers Rock. You will be met on arrival at the airport and transferred to the Sails in the Desert Hotel for 2 nights in a Terrace (Family) Room.

Sails in the Desert is a luxurious five-star hotel set in the Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park, part of the Ayers Rock Resort. It is a striking blend of contemporary design—the name ‘Sails in the Desert’ is derived from the white sail-like structures that shade the hotel grounds and gardens—and Aboriginal heritage. The rooms are large, spacious and lavishly furnished, and enjoy dramatic views of the desert (though not of Uluru itself). Facilities include swimming pool, tennis courts, and a selection of restaurants.

Australia’s Red Centre is home to three geological marvels – Kata Tjuta, Mt Conner and Uluru, also known as Ayers Rock. This evening you will join a small group on a sunset tour of Uluru, accompanied by a local guide (transfers, drinks and snacks included). A National Park fee of A$25.00 per person (16 years and over) is payable locally.

Uluru is one of Australia’s most famous landmarks, a vast inselberg that dwarfs everything around it. But it is also a site of great cultural significance, especially to the local Anangu people, for whom the monolith was traditionally a sacred site. As you explore the site with an Aboriginal guide, you will have the chance to learn more about the importance of Uluru to Aboriginal culture, and of the stories told about its origins in the fabled ‘Dreamtime’.

Return to your hotel late afternoon. Evening at leisure.

Day 6:
Kata Tjuta

An early start this morning as you embark on a sunrise tour of Kata Tjuta. Breakfast is provided during the excursion, so you can set off as early as dawn.

This is a great chance to escape the crowds, as most groups will be viewing Ayers Rock at this time of day! The rock formations of Kata Tjuta are at their most spectacular at sunrise, their colours changing in response to the shifting light. Take the time to meander through the natural rock domes, of which there are 36, and to explore Walpa Gorge. Your guide will explain the cultural significance of the site, particularly its role as an Aboriginal ceremonial site. You’ll learn also about the conflict between the early European colonists and Aboriginal peoples.

Later this afternoon take a tour of the Curtin Springs cattle station, a working ranch situated at the base of Mount Conner. The cattle station provides an insight into the history of the colonial settlers, and about outback life more generally. Your guide will take you on a tour of the ranch and its land by 4x4. With luck, you’ll be able to spot kangaroo and wallaby during the journey.

The tour ends with a sundowner on Mt Conner, the perfect spot for watching the sunset over the desert, followed by a three-course dinner at the homestead prepared by the station cook—a real taste of outback life!

Day 7:
Darwin

You will be collected from your hotel after breakfast and transferred to the airport for the late morning flight to Darwin. On arrival in Darwin, meet with your driver for the short transfer to Mantra Hotel on the Esplanade, where you check in for one night in a 2 bedroom apartment.

Leaving Darwin, your first stop is Fogg Dam Conservation Reserve, one of several wetland parks in the region and an important nesting site for a wide array of water birds.

From Fogg Dam, continue on to the Adelaide River, a habitat for the famous jumping crocodile. These jumping saltwater crocs are a marvel, having developed a technique of projecting their bodies out of the water using only their tails – a hunting trick which has helped them survive in this region for more than a hundred million years.

Late morning, make a short detour from the highway to visit the Learning Tree Lagoon, a beautiful billabong that at the right time of year is covered in water lilies, making it a popular spot with photographers. After the morning’s wilderness adventure, lunch will be at a traditional Aussie Roadhouse, the Bark Hut Inn, a reminder of earlier, wilder times dating back to the buffalo era.

The day’s adventures end at Cooinda, in Kakadu National Park, with a Yellow Water sunset cruise. The lake at Cooinda presents a peaceful prospect at sunset, and attracts plentiful birdlife—you can hope to see jacana birds, jabirus, eagles, darts, and much more—making it a wonderfully relaxed way to end the day. After the cruise, head to a nearby campsite and pitch up for the night.

Day 9:
Kakadu & Arnhem Land

After breakfast at the campsite, head to Arnhem Land, an important centre of Aboriginal life, for a walk up Injalak Hill with a local elder.

Arnhem is one of the few parts of Australia where Aboriginal culture is still dominant. This is despite a long history of close interaction with other cultures, starting with the Makassar, who traded on the shores of Arnhem during the European middle ages.

Arnhem Land continues to be a homeland to 20,000 people, as well as an important centre of Aboriginal culture. Your tour will provide a chance to learn more about this culture, as you explore the region’s traditional rock art sites. Equally, it’s a chance to take in the region’s dramatic landscapes—the view from the top of Injalak Hill, of the floodplains and the escarpment, is just stunning.

Day 10:
Darwin

Travel south to Darwin. During the return trip you will have time to visit a number of the sights in the Kakadu region that you may have missed during the journey into the Park—such as the spectacular Katherine Gorge, and Gunlom Falls, where you can stop for a swim.

This day is fairly flexible so feel free to discuss your interests with your guide. Expect to reach Darwin early evening, where you will be returned to the Mantra on the Esplanade for one night.

Day 11:
Port Douglas

Morning flight to Cairns, where you will be met on arrival by your driver and driven to Port Douglas (approx. one hour’s drive time). Check into Niramaya Villas and Spa for four nights in a 2 bedroom Villa.

Situated on the outskirts of Port Douglas, Niramaya Villas and Spa offers you the space and privacy of a private apartment alongside the facilities of a top hotel, including a day spa, huge swimming pool, gym and a selection of bars and restaurants.

With its unique pavilion-style accommodation, Niramaya has all the style and character of a South-East Asian boutique lodge. The private villas are large, spacious and feature full kitchenettes, lounge and dining areas, as well as outdoor terraces with day beds and pools.

Day 12:
Daintree Adventure Day

Embark on a full-day private tour of Daintree, one of the oldest rainforests in the world, and setting for a whole host of exciting adventure activities. Included in the tour are a Daintree river cruise, ‘Jungle Surfing’ activities, and all transport and guiding services. Please remember to pack a hat, sun lotion and insect repellent!

You will be collected from your hotel by your guide early this morning and driven north to Daintree. There will be time to take a stroll along the beach at Cape Tribulation or on one of the many scenic forest boardwalks, before you head to the Jungle Surfing centre in north Daintree.

The Jungle Surfing is a great activity for families (NB. the minimum age is 3). It lasts approx. one and a half hours and involves crossing the forest canopy on a network of zip-wires. You’ll stop at platforms in the trees along the way, which provide views of the forest below the canopy, and out onto the Cape and the Great Barrier Reef.

After lunch, you might like to visit the Daintree Ice Cream Co., where local fruits are made into the unique flavours of ice cream—everything from black sapote to wattle seed! Later this afternoon, enjoy a relaxing cruise on the Daintree River, during which you can hope to spot some of the region’s more elusive wildlife, such as the saltwater crocodile.

Day 13:
Great Barrier Reef

You will be collected from your villa early this morning and driven to the marina at Port Douglas for a full-day Great Barrier Reef cruise.

The cruise will take you to the Agincourt Ribbon Reefs, about 90 minutes’ off-shore. The day isn’t rigidly structured; you are free to snorkel on the reef (all equipment, including wetsuits, will be provided), or to just relax on the cruise boat. There will be a naturalist guide with the group, who will give a guided snorkelling tour and provide a talk. Lunch on board the boat is included.

Please do note that there is an additional charge if you want to dive. There is also a small park fee of A$3.50 per person to be paid locally.

Return to your villa early evening.

Day 14:
At leisure to explore Port Douglas

Today you are free to explore Port Douglas and Far North Queensland independently.

Port Douglas is a delightful seaside town, full of small shops, cafes and some of Australia’s best restaurants. The Sunday markets are always worth a visit if your trip coincides with them. Also take the time to visit the Four Mile Beach and the Coral Sea. A number of activities, from surfing to helicopter rides and steam train rides, are available in and around Port Douglas—plenty, in short, to keep even the most active of families busy!